Elle Macpherson's ex-boyfriend, billionaire businessman and owner of the famous Fontainebleau Hotel in Miami Beach, Jeffrey Soffer, has walked away unharmed from a horror helicopter crash in the Bahamas that left one dead.

There were five people on board the aircraft when it plunged into a tailspin on its way to the exclusive Baker's Bay Golf and Ocean Club on Great Guana Cay on Thursday.

The person who died was the helicopter's owner; Soffer walked off the helicopter after the crash, banged and bruised but with no serious injuries, according to the Miami Herald.

He was flown back to South Florida by airplane and taken to the University of Miami Hospital, where he was evaluated, reports the Daily Mail.

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An employee at the resort community described the crash as a "nightmare", and said: "They got into an air pocket and it went into a tailspin. It recovered, and then it went into a tailspin again and from there it hit the ground. The tail came off and the cabin just went into a spin and somebody got thrown out,"

The group were going to the resort for a holiday to celebrate Thanksgiving.

Baker's Bay is a playground for millionaires about 150 miles off the Florida coast. It includes an oceanfront golf course, a private family beach club and boutique shops.

Soffer, who is also a partner of Turnberry Associates, a major South Florida real estate developer and property manager, dated Elle Macpherson for two years until March 2012.